Ulhmann Helicon

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floydr
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Ulhmann Helicon

Post by floydr »

Another one Jane has. Smells bad and looks bad...Hang on wall or sell? I might bring it home and put it outside for a few days to kill the dust mites... Fairly small interior.
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imperialbari
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Re: Ulhmann Helicon

Post by imperialbari »

floydr wrote:Another one Jane has. Smells bad and looks bad...Hang on wall or sell? I might bring it home and put it outside for a few days to kill the dust mites... Fairly small interior.
Any photos or links illustrating this Uhlmann helicon?

Klaus Smedegaard Bjerre
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floydr
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Picture

Post by floydr »

pictures of this BBb helicon at:

http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=wds ... leid=en_US

If you have an interest or have an offer, PM me. I could put it on Ebay, but this seems like a place to start. It will be a project for whomever. 12 inch bell...Messed with lead pipe. one screw missing from clockspring valves... They move...
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Post by eupher61 »

that is a funky looking helicon! Was it frankened into a BBb?
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imperialbari
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Post by imperialbari »

Despite the not fully readabler shot of the bell engraving this appears to be a pre-WWI Austrian-Hungarian instrument. The band pitch of that country and era was very high, A=466, or so.

The long tuning slide takes the pitch the needed semitone down to modern BBb.

To the OP: You cannot make photos pop up here by linking to an albun. This site needs the root addresses of photos:

Image

Image

Image

Image

A readable shot of the engraving or a full and exact transcript would be helpful in documenting this instrument.

Klaus Smedegaard Bjerre
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Donn
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Post by Donn »

It would be interesting to hear it. Almost no bell flare, and what looks like 8 feet of tubing upstream of the valve section?
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floydr
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More pictures in album

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I added some more pictures.
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Getting inquires..what is it worth

Post by floydr »

Does anyone have an idea of the value of this thing? The money I get get goes to a widow friend of mine and I don't want to have given away the horn to the first bidder.
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Post by J.c. Sherman »

Looks terrible - worthless. Better send it to me!

J.c.S.
Instructor of Tuba & Euphonium, Cleveland State University
Principal Tuba, Firelands Symphony Orchestra
President, Variations in Brass
http://www.jcsherman.net
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JCS

Post by floydr »

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Make an obscene offer and it will be on it's way. I think it would make a lovely flower pot or fountain.
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Re: Ulhmann Helicon

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I took the Helicon to my friend at Stanroys and he made the beast playable. Apparently Phil had used a pieces of copper tubing and lots of tape to 'repair' the leadpipe. Bruce unfixed this and put on a leadpipe that is close to the correct size and cleaned it up a bit. Now it plays, but still has some leaks where the metal is fatiguied and he didn't think I wanted to pay for a full restoration. It has a funky sound(more like a big bass bone) and if I had the patience and money to make it better, I might consider keeping it. I can make it almost play in-tune if I work on it, but it is certainly not very centered. Someone who is a collector or insane should make me an offer and I will send it on its way. Anyone have an idea of what it is worth? One of the first rotary 4 -valve Helicons? PM me !

:tuba:
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